Franchise businesses serve as the backbone of the restaurant and retail industry. A successful franchise often starts as a small local business that catches the eye of savvy investors. Starbucks, McDonald’s, Walmart and Whole Foods are just a few of the many corporations that started as small mom-and-pop operations and were later franchised into nationwide networks.

SmartBiz does not originate loans. Rather, it is a service that matches business owners with SBA-preferred banks. If you don’t qualify for an SBA loan, SmartBiz can match you with one of its non-SBA partners to secure a loan. While SBA loans have the lowest interest rates and longest repayment terms — up to 10 years for most loans — you might still be able to get a medium-term non-SBA loan with an interest rate as low as 7.99% through SmartBiz.

Sometimes it makes sense to tap 401(k), Individual Retirement Account or other retirement funds rather than seek a loan. But rather than just taking an early withdrawal, which may be subject to taxation, you may want to consider setting up a C corporation that will own and operate the business. Then roll over money from your self-directed retirement account into that corporation’s profit-sharing plan and direct that those funds be invested into the franchised business. But this is a risky option: If the franchise fails, your retirement fund can be wiped out. Check with a professional on possible tax implications, and consider the tradeoffs carefully.
Fees and costs. Origination, underwriting and early repayment fees are typical costs that you could see. If a lender provides an APR, it includes the interest rate plus any upfront fees. Early repayment can be a conditional fee and is not reflected in the APR, so it’s a good idea to carefully read through the terms of your offer before accepting it. Learn more about business loan costs.

Follow – After you’ve set up your account and have a clear branding strategy in place, it’s time to start working on gaining visibility on Instagram. You should follow as many people who are relevant to your business as possible. For example, influencers, brands with complementary products and past customers. Read this blog for a guide on how to use social media influencers to promote your business.

Repairs, improvements, and replacements. Be aware of a clause that says that at the end of the lease you must restore the premises to their original condition. Try to negotiate a clause that states the following: “The premises will be returned to the Landlord at the end of the tenancy in the same condition as at the beginning of the tenancy, excluding (1) ordinary wear and tear, (2) damage by fire and unavoidable casualty not the fault of the Tenant, and (3) alterations previously approved by the Landlord.”
If you own the business entirely by yourself and plan to be responsible for all debts and obligations, you can register for a sole proprietorship. Be warned that this route can directly affect your personal credit. Alternatively, a partnership, as its name implies, means that two or more people are held personally liable as business owners. You don't have to go it alone if you can find a business partner with complimentary skills to your own.
This will include choosing and registering your business name and choosing a business structure. Many small business startups will choose between a sole-proprietorship, a partnership, and a limited liability company. However, you can also start a corporation or a non-profit company. Each of these structures will have different pros and cons and be treated differently when it comes time to file taxes.
A ROBS let’s you fund all, or part, of your new franchise with retirement savings (401k, IRA, 403b, etc) without paying early withdrawal penalties and taxes. If you have at least $50,000 in your eligible retirement account a ROBS can help you fund 100% of your franchise, be combined with seller financing, or be used as a downpayment for an SBA loan. Learn more by speaking with our recommended ROBS provider, Guidant, who offers an initial free consultation.
A microloan is similar to a traditional bank loan, but they often come from alternative lenders like credit unions. A microloan tends to be easier to get for those with subpar credit because the loan amounts, as the name indicates, are small, typically fifty thousand dollars or less. Because of this, the credit requirements for these loans are also lower. If this amount of funding suits your needs, this is a good option. The SBA has a microloan program, and there are several alternative lending options such as Prosper and Zopa.
Never start a business as a “sole proprietorship,” which can result in your personal assets being at risk for the debts and liabilities of the business. You will almost always want to start the business as an S corporation (giving you favorable flow through tax treatment), a C corporation (which is what most venture capital investors expect to see), or a limited liability company (LLC). None of those are particularly expensive or difficult to set up. My personal preference is to start the business as an S corporation, which can then easily be converted to a C corporation as you bring in investors and issue multiple classes of stock.
2. You can do it because there is a business appropriate for just about everyone’s interests, experience, passions or expertise. “Starting a business” really only comes down to figuring out your business idea, doing your paperwork, and sorting out the money. Given the number of funding resources available today, you shouldn’t have too much of a problem getting that initial startup cash, especially if you focus on a lean business model or MVP route to market.
The brand you choose to work with may provide upfront estimates of how much it will cost to start a new business and can also give you information on monthly and year-over-year revenue goals and expected progress. This information, if available, is often found in Item 19 of the FDD. However, a franchise is not required to provide this information in their FDD - so speaking with several existing franchisees is always a wise choice. Based on this data and your own projections make sure you understand when your business will break even factoring in both expenses as well as the loan payments and always assume there will be unexpected costs. When determining your loan amount make sure to include working capital to get you through the ramp-up period of the business until the business can support expenses and loan payments. When lenders review your loan application they will pay attention to several key things, but 2 items that you should be aware of are Loan To Value (LTV) and Debt Service Coverage Ratio (DSCR). LTV is a measure of the total value of the loan amount compared to the collateral pledged. Lenders will look at the collateral as a secondary source of repayment of the loan and in many cases with a start-up financing may look for collateral to cover the full loan. In cases where there is not enough collateral the lenders will look to other strengths of the deal. DSCR is a measure of the cash generated by the business available for the loan payments. The higher the DSCR, the better because in the bank's view there will be a cushion of cash just in case there are unforeseen problems or slow periods for the business. A lender will typically look for a minimum DSCR 1.20x or more. If your projections don't show the ability to service debt lenders may shy away from your loan request so it is important to understand the accuracy of your projections.
In most cases, maintaining a good business credit report is enough to qualify. In addition, it instills confidence not only in the lender, but also in you. There is at least one SBA office in every state in America. If you contact them regarding the startup status of your business model and plan, you can get started on a government small business loan that will give you the financing to make your dreams a reality.
Starting a business involves a lot of moving factors, but the most important one is financing. You are going to need to spend some time evaluating your business model and writing your business plan before you can really determine the type of loan you need and the best way to secure that loan. As your business grows, your lending needs will change, so take the time now to understand the differences between lending and investing so you can be ready when your company starts to grow and needs to adjust its financing.
Type of loan. Many types of business loans need to be secured by collateral, whether that’s by your mortgage, investment accounts, vehicle, life insurance or other assets. You may find that while you still need to secure them, SBA loans come with better interest rates and requirements that aren’t as strict as other financing options. The fact that they’re guaranteed for up to 90% of their amount by the government gives lenders the confidence they need to make offers to customers who may be more risky borrowers.
Whereas working for someone else alleviates these responsibilities, the startup owner takes on all these stresses themselves. Not only that, every country has different laws, regulations and requirements to get your business up and running. So, even if you’ve started a business in one country, you’ve still got to do a pile of research to make sure you do it properly in another.

One basic way to protect proprietary company information is through the use of a Confidentiality and Invention Assignment Agreement. This type of agreement deals with confidentiality issues, but can also ensure that the ideas, work product, and inventions the employee creates that are related to company business belong to the company—not the employee.

In most cases, franchise owners provide technical support, equipment, and other necessary materials to their franchisees. Also, fellow franchisees can merge and share best practices, business approaches, and marketing strategies to colleagues whose business acumen and management skills are still developing. Simply put, there are a lot of good reasons why starting a business by buying a franchise will be a success.
As the saying goes: "The only certainties in life are death and taxes." Unfortunately, this is also true if you start a business in Australia - you absolutely must register for the correct taxes to avoid any potential legal implications. The taxes you must register for are dependent on the type of business you choose to start, with some applicable to every type and others only mandatory for certain types.
SBA small business loans. Some banks offer attractive low-interest-rate loans for small businesses, backed and guaranteed by the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA). Because of the SBA guarantee, the interest rate and repayment terms are more favorable than most loans. Loan amounts range from $30,000 to as high as $5 million. However, the loan process is time consuming with strict requirements for eligible small businesses. Visit the SBA website to see a list of the 100 most active SBA lenders.
SBA loans of five- to six-year maturities can provide short-term working capital and equipment. Real-estate loans can run for 20 years or more. About 10% of all SBA loans go to franchisees, with the size running between $250,000 and $500,000, and maximum of $2 million. Most of that money is for franchise entry fees, improvements or working capital. Borrowers must be creditworthy, typically must contribute some equity, and are expected to repay the SBA loan out of the franchise’s cash flow.
In a misguided effort to save on expenses, startup businesses often hire inexperienced legal counsel. Rather than spending the money necessary to hire competent legal counsel, founders will often hire lawyers who are friends, relatives, or others who offer large fee discounts. In doing so, the founders deny themselves the advice of experienced legal counsel who could potentially help them avoid many serious legal problems.
You’re applying for a business loan, and you may even be organized as a corporation or LLC. However, lenders will almost always want to hold you personally responsible for the loan. If they don’t do that and the business fails, there’s nobody left to repay them. But if you make a personal guarantee on the loan (which is likely a requirement), they can go after you personally, and your personal credit will suffer if you don’t repay.
Before you can get a traditional bank loan, you need to have collateral, generally in the form of your house although other assets including land, cars, watercraft, motorcycles and equipment that has a title of ownership can be used as collateral. Understand the risk involved with your business venture before you put up collateral–the bank will take your house, car or whatever else you put down if you default on your loan. Make sure you have an accurate assessment of what your collateral is worth before you apply for a loan so you don’t wind up unpleasantly surprised when your bank assumes it’s worth today’s market value, not the value that it was when you bought it. If you don’t have an asset to use as collateral or are uncomfortable with the idea, then you’ll want to seek out a source other than a bank for your business lending needs.
Your business plan is essential to get approved for a loan. If you don’t have one yet, it’s time to create one. You need to show, with specific numbers, how you’ll earn money, how you’ll spend it, and your big-picture strategy. Explain who all of the players are in your business, especially management, marketing, and sales roles – those individuals will bring in new business that helps pay for the loan. It’s okay if you do all of those jobs – just explain why that is and your track record of success in those areas.
SBA loans are government-guaranteed loans with long repayment terms and low interest rates. There are many different types of SBA loans, but the most popular SBA loans are 7a loans and 504 loans. An SBA 7(a) loan can be used for working capital (marketing, staffing, etc), equipment, or for commercial real estate. The SBA 504 loan is only for commercial real estate and fixed equipment. Franchises are often a great fit for SBA loans, because of the SBA’s policy goals to help build small businesses to grow the economy.
Fundation offers an 18-month line of credit in addition to 1 – 4-year installment loans. The time from application to funding generally takes between 2 and 7 days. All in all, Fundation is a smart choice for established businesses that don’t want to wait months to get a franchise loan approval. Read our Fundation review to find out why we rate this alternative franchise lender 5/5 stars.
A number of costs go into the launching a franchise. Initial costs include paying for professional advisers such as a lawyer to look over contracts and an accountant to advise or manage your finances. You’ll also need to invest money up-front for anything your business will need: real estate or lease payments, inventory, equipment, supplies insurance, licenses, recruitment, employee preparation, and signage. A grand opening event and initial marketing expenses will also add to your startup costs. You’ll also want to account for ongoing expenses such as professional services, supplies, employee pay and benefits, rent or property taxes, utilities and maintenance.

There are probably understandable reasons for your bad credit. Most of us are still bouncing back from the recession, and some businesses were hit harder than others. Whether or not you decide to get a “bad-credit loan,” building up your credit is planning for the future of your company. Once you raise your credit score, it will be much easier to secure funding as your company grows.